About Fragments of Flight

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Fragments of Flight is an evolving series of layered artworks inspired by British butterflies, conservation science, and the cultural history of collecting. The project reimagines early 20th-century lepidoptera drawers—once used to catalogue and control nature—as poetic, visual stories that reflect ecological fragility and seasonal change.

Through fieldwork, archival research, and experimental printmaking, I’m developing 20 reinterpreted drawers (plus a surprise), each linked to a specific species and season. The project explores questions of extinction, adaptation, habitat loss, and how we engage with nature in an era of environmental change.

Each piece combines printed images, etched glass, found materials, and museum-style storytelling devices—including maps, labels, and QR codes. Some drawers highlight well-known species like the Swallowtail or Peacock. Others disrupt the familiar: extinct species, specimen fakes, and colonial-era narratives that complicate our understanding of science and nature.

The work began during a mentorship with Creature Conserve and continues through partnerships with conservationists, archives, and ecological sites across the UK. Field research includes joining butterfly transects and visiting key habitats like chalk grasslands and rewilded estates. Archival research is focused on Victorian and Edwardian collections in Oxford, Cambridge, Manchester, and London.

Fragments of Flight is currently in development and will culminate in an exhibition and public programme in 2026.